Tele2 IoT & Picadeli – Fresh, Healthy & Delicious Salad Through FoodTech

Picadeli has been at the forefront of digital development for a number of years and has seen how technology can contribute to an almost perfect dining experience. With the help of IoT from Tele2, Picadeli can reduce food waste and work for a more sustainable food industry.

A salad bar that is constantly replenished, always has fresh ingredients, and is also hygienic even after hundreds of customers use it is a challenge. Picadeli leverages IoT technology and connectivity to address these challenges while also creating both a better customer experience and to reduce food waste.

“We use IoT to optimize each individual store’s salad bar, addressing how much and what we order,” says Jonas Landström, CTO, Picadeli. “We can have as many as 50 different products on a salad bar – and everything must be consumed as soon as possible. By using IoT devices and sensors, we have managed to reduce wastage to a minimum, something that is a big challenge for the food industry.”

Real-time data for full control

In 2013, Picadeli took a big step into digitalization with the development of a connected salad bar, the Arctic Salad Bar. IoT technology and connectivity makes it possible to keep track of each product digitally. The technology is nearly invisible to the end customer, with only a few digital signs indicating that this salad bar is significantly more advanced than a traditional do-it-yourself one. In fact, the salad bars are fully connected with several technologies that make operational reliability close to 100 percent.

The entire Picadeli system benefits stores and grocery chains, and ultimately improves the customer experience. The food is fresh, the right ingredients are in stock, and food waste is low. The majority of Picadeli’s technology is developed internally. There are no legacy structures, and the company has been able to be both innovative and forward-leaning with both technology development and digitalization from the beginning.

“We focus on what is reasonable and possible to solve, what we want, and what the customers want,” says Jonas Landström.

Customer needs go hand-in-hand with technology. One example is the advanced machine learning that allows Picadeli to analyze historical data, weather forecasts, and even holiday breaks to make forecasts for rates of consumption. This historical data allows Picadeli to create customized orders for each store. For example, on a sunny day, salad sales usually increase, and the system can automatically adjust an order to meet increasing demand.

A positive trend

Today’s inflation and high interest rates mean that many people are keeping a close eye on their everyday expenses. The result is that more and more people are choosing to grab lunch at a salad bar rather than at a restaurant, a trend that benefits Picadeli.

“That we are affordable is incredibly important. We should not be a concept only for people who can afford to eat healthy. We see that the price difference has increased between a lunch in town and our salad bar. It makes a difference to our sales, and last year was our best year yet,” says Jonas Landström.

At the start, it required almost a full-time person to manage the salad bar. That time has been cut considerably thanks to developments in Picadeli’s system. The combination of data collection, connectivity, and machine learning has optimized everything. Today, just over two hours are needed to manage the salad bar for a whole day.

Since its inception, the company is growing both locally and globally. In Sweden, Picadeli can be found in locations that previously had a limited number of restaurants. Now there is a tasty and healthy alternative to the local pizzeria or Thai restaurant. This has also led to new target groups finding their way to grocery stores, often those with higher demands for a sustainable and healthy diet.

Sustainability plays a major role for the entire chain. Picadeli has removed red meat from all salad bars and is promoting alternative vegan proteins. They are also tackling the problem of packaging waste by phasing out plastic and introducing paper lids.

“One third of all climate footprints are related to food production. We have phased out accessories such as meatballs, ham and bacon and now a lunch from Picadeli has half the climate footprint of a standard lunch,” says Jonas Landström.

IoT connectivity a critical success factor

Picadeli has turned salad bars into a service, and with real-time data on each product, they can address challenges quickly while also providing customers with a consistently high-quality product.

“It is a pleasure to work with companies like Picadeli who do everything carefully and with great seriousness. Being able to connect and ensure that the salad bars in Europe can be reached remotely has been both fun and exciting,” says Tele2 IoT Key Account Manager Anders Jutered.

“IoT has also been very important for our international growth,” says Jonas Landström “Being able to connect salad bars without a LAN connection in the store has been crucial.”

As for the future, data helps the company build new value propositions.

“A next step for us is to look at how we can use the data we receive to create even better experiences for our millions of customers,” says Jonas Landström. “We will do this with Tele2 IoT as we continue to push the boundaries of our business.”